Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix

The 2012 edition of the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) took place earlier this month at the Geneva Grand Théâtre. This Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix salutes the excellence of worldwide horological production and annually rewards the finest creations and the most important operators in the watchmaking sector. And from the prestigious winners list, we pick the five timepieces we covet.

Winner of the Sports Watch Prize: Doppel 2.0, Habring² - This watch certainly took its own sweet time to make its presence felt given that it was 20 years in the making. Joseph Thaddäus Winnerl hit upon the idea of a separately stoppable seconds hand in 1831, while searching for the first watch that could measure intervals of time. The mechanism was refined over the years by several others to arrive at what is today known as the chronograph. But it was Winnerl who laid the foundations for a more complicated chronograph: the chrono rattrapante or double (or split-seconds) chronograph. Now, in 2012, this Austrian company has reinterpreted the double chronograph in a future-oriented design. As a result of ending the 20-year chapter of development, Habring² has made an exception and has departed from its usual annual output of 12 units per model to produce precisely 20 Doppel 2.0 at their atelier in Völkermarkt. With a choice of three dial designs: blue, grey and brown, each offset in orange, the Doppel 2.0 is available exclusively in a 42 mm diameter stainless steel case.

Winner of the Ladies Watch Prize: Première Flying Tourbillon, Chanel - This exceptional tourbillon has been developed in close collaboration between Chanel and the Swiss manufacturers, engineers and master watchmakers Renaud & Papi (APRP SA) the advanced research and development branch of Audemars Piguet. The watch is decorated with the motif of the camellia, a tribute to Mademoiselle Chanel's favourite flower, and the pretty floral design comprises interlocked petals and a heart paved with diamonds. Equipped with a power reserve of 40 hours, the case, bezel and the crown are set entirely with baguett-cut diamonds or Mozambique rubies and a magnificent rose-cut gem for the crown. The diamond version - produced in just 20 pieces - features 18-carat white gold set with 101 baguette-cut diamonds and 127 brilliant-cut diamonds. Each piece requires 23 hours of setting and over one hundred hours of assembly.

Winner of the Aiguille d'Or Prize: Mikrogirder, TAG Heuer - The TAG Heuer Mikrogirder which won this year's Aiguille d'Or, the top prize at the Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix ceremonies and the most coveted distinction in the global watch industry, is a dual-assortment, ultra high-frequency watch. The first watch that has been created without a balance wheel or a hairspring, it beats 7.2 million times every hour and has a flying central chronograph hand that rotates 20 times per second. The watch has been conceived, developed and manufactured in-house in the company's R&D lab in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland and its design, a rubber strap with an anthracite dial and an assymetrical case completes this stunning timepiece.

Winner of the Jewellery and Artistic Crafts Watch Prize: IMPERIALE Tourbillon Full Set, Chopard - With this exquisite creation, Chopard reiterates its expertise in both fields - watchmaking and jewellery. The intricate gem-setting work reflects the brand's fabulous jewellery-making skills, while the L.U.C 02-14-L movement - entirely designed, developed and crafted by hand - is equipped with a tourbillon, one of the finest complications of watchmaking. The IMPERIALE Tourbillon Joaillerie is housed within an 18-carat case with the dial entirely paved with diamonds while the crown is adorned with baguette and briolette-cut diamonds. Oval-cut cabochons and baguette-cut diamonds also grace the bezel, lugs and bracelet. The distinctive motif is held in place by four amethyst-set screws. This model meets all the standards required to earn the chronometer certificate awarded by the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC).